Children’s miniature football player cards, Montevideo, c.1928
Miniature children’s playing cards with photographs of football players on the reverse.
Mini-Naipes FUTBOL - Children’s football player cards, anonymous manufacturer, Montevideo, c.1928
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Right: the cards stored inside a match box →
Above: Miniature children’s playing cards depicting photographs of football players on the reverse, all with shiny haircuts. Similar mini-packs were published showing popular heroes and celebrities and proverbs and maxims. Cards of this type are examples of playing cards used for educational purposes besides providing entertainment value to young people.
Educational or Instructional playing cards have been around since the 16th century. See also: Proverbial Cards, 1698 • Mechanical Instruments, c.1700 • Cartes Questions-Devinettes, c.1840 • Happy Families • Jaques' Illustrated Proverbs, c.1885 • Spanish Instructional Cards, 1888 • Children's Maxim Cards from Uruguay • Change for a Shilling, c.1930 • Indian Alphabetical Cards, c.1940 • Wild Flower Sevens card game, 1960 • Snip Snap, 1968.
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By Simon Wintle
Member since February 01, 1996
Founder and editor of the World of Playing Cards since 1996. He is a former committee member of the IPCS and was graphics editor of The Playing-Card journal for many years. He has lived at various times in Chile, England and Wales and is currently living in Extremadura, Spain. Simon's first limited edition pack of playing cards was a replica of a seventeenth century traditional English pack, which he produced from woodblocks and stencils.
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